Gold — a precious metal valued for its beauty, rarity, and economic significance — has shaped human civilization for centuries. It is a hedge against economic uncertainty and a symbol of wealth and power.
In Ghana, once known as the Gold Coast, the metal remains deeply intertwined with the nation’s identity. As of 2024, Ghana’s gold production stood at about 137 metric tonnes, accounting for 57% of total export revenue.
Yet, as the saying goes, “Not all that glitters is gold.” Borrowed from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, the phrase reminds us that not everything that appears valuable truly is. Bob Marley echoed this wisdom in his iconic song “Get Up, Stand Up,” singing:“It is not all that glitter is gold; half the story has never been told.”
That untold story is what unfolds daily across Ghana’s mining communities.
From ‘Gather and Sell’ to Galamsey
Long before industrial mining began in the late 19th century, locals in gold-rich areas mined using rudimentary tools — hoes, picks, and shovels — a practice known as “gather and sell”, later corrupted into “galamsey.”
Over time, however, this artisanal activity has evolved into a destructive, large-scale operation involving powerful excavators, water pumps, and mechanized washing platforms — many operated illegally by both locals and foreign nationals, especially the Chinese.
The result has been widespread environmental devastation: deforestation, polluted rivers, poisoned farmlands, and toxic air. Communities once lush with vegetation now resemble wastelands. The Ghana Water Company has even been forced to shut down some treatment plants due to extreme water turbidity, leaving millions without safe drinking water.
Beyond the environment, galamsey has inflicted grave health impacts — birth deformities, stillbirths, cancers, and heavy metal poisoning from mercury and cyanide. It has also destroyed cocoa farms, threatening one of Ghana’s most vital export crops.
A Nation in Protest
From the Catholic Bishops Conference to the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, University Teachers Association of Ghana, Ghana Medical Association, and Trades Union Congress, many institutions and citizens have demanded that government declare a targeted state of emergency in affected areas.
The argument is simple yet profound: gold may enrich the economy, but air, water, and soil sustain life — and life cannot be traded for profit.
What is striking, however, is the political irony. Both the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) — Ghana’s two dominant political parties — have taken turns governing and protesting galamsey. The NDC called for a state of emergency while in opposition; now in power, it faces the same pressure from the NPP. The cycle of condemnation and inaction continues.
The Glitter and the Gloom
Marley’s line — “Half the story has never been told” — perfectly captures the deception surrounding illegal mining. The communities that bear the scars of extraction remain poor, neglected, and polluted, far from the prosperity of mining cities like Johannesburg or Kimberley in South Africa.
Meanwhile, youthful Ghanaians — often desperate for work — become the disposable labor of this illicit industry. They dig, destroy, and sometimes die in collapsing pits, while the financiers live comfortably, detached from the suffering on the ground.
A Call to Conscience
The question now is sobering: What does the future hold if we continue extracting gold in such a destructive manner?
All well-meaning Ghanaians must, in the spirit of Bob Marley’s words, “Get up, stand up for our rights.” The time has come to end galamsey — not tomorrow, not someday, but now.
By Godfrey Baidoo-Tsibu
